Delhi air pollution was the focus of a short-term discussion in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi House, where councillors sought stricter enforcement of existing rules and proposed a four-month restriction on wood-based cremations at the capital’s crematoriums.
The proposal was made by BJP councillor Rajpal Singh during the meeting chaired by Deputy Mayor Monika Pant. Singh called for wood to be replaced, where possible, with cow-dung cakes, compressed natural gas or electric cremation methods during the four-month period. He said around 200 cremations take place daily using wood and claimed that restricting the practice could save nearly 100 tonnes of wood each day while reducing pollution from its burning.
The proposal was presented as one short-term measure among several demands raised during the discussion. Councillors also called for stricter action against illegal construction, open storage of construction material, uncollected waste and inadequate enforcement of pollution-control rules at street level.
BJP councillor Ritu Goyal said discussions on air pollution would remain ineffective without better sanitation. She alleged that the waste collection company operating in the Rohini zone was not performing properly, leading to the accumulation of garbage. She also sought action against people leaving construction material uncovered on roads, a practice that councillors linked to dust and deteriorating local air quality.
Congress councillor and party leader Nazia Danish also called for pollution-control measures to be implemented on the ground. The discussion therefore covered several municipal sources and enforcement responsibilities, rather than focusing only on emissions from cremation facilities.
The proposal to restrict wood cremations has not been described in the report as an adopted MCD decision or an implemented order. The figures cited by Singh regarding daily wood-based cremations and potential wood savings were presented during the House discussion and were not independently verified in the report. Any restriction would also require operational arrangements at crematoriums and access to alternative cremation methods, although the meeting report does not provide details on such a plan.
The meeting was also marked by a dispute involving Leader of the Opposition Ankush Narang. According to Leader of the House Jai Bhagwan Yadav, Narang pushed and engaged in a physical altercation with security personnel after entering the House and moving towards the Mayor’s chair. Narang, however, alleged that MCD security guards had prevented Aam Aadmi Party councillors from entering the House. He said the councillors were demanding an FIR in connection with the matter involving Parvesh Verma and alleged that the police had not registered one.
The pollution discussion took place as councillors pressed for enforcement across waste management, construction activity and local pollution-control measures. The next steps on the proposed four-month restriction on wood cremations, including whether the MCD will issue any formal order, were not specified in the report.
